NOT QUITE THE NEWS
Phitsanulok - The spirit of democracy may not be present at Government House, but it was demonstrated by villagers at Ban Nong Ta Ruang in Phitsanulok.
They voted on Tuesday for incumbent Banjong Wangchao-na, 47, to be the village headman in a local election - even though he was dead.
The dead candidate won by 111 votes to 88 in the race, which saw a high turnout of 68% of 291 eligible voters.
The former village headman died of heart failure on Aug 26. But 40 supporters of his could not let him rest in peace and on Monday petitioned provincial governor Somboon Sriwattanawat to keep him in the competition.
The bewildered governor had to consult the Provincial Administration Department for help.
The department decided the elections could go ahead as planned but in case Banjong got elected, a by-election would follow.
Without Banjong, the other candidate, Sudjai Taijan, 44, could have enjoyed a one-horse race.
Many voters, anxious for the results, hung around for the vote count in the afternoon.
The provincial office was informed of the results. A new round of candidate registration will be held in the near future.
Feng shui overkill
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| PAD supporters put up a mirror in front of a cannon at Government House to ward off bad luck as suggested by a feng shui expert. — PHOTO: THITI WANNAMONTHA |
It has been almost four months now since the People's Alliance for Democracy kicked off its rally to oust the "puppet government".
Many staunch PAD supporters had started to wonder why it had taken so long to make inroads.
And a group of feng shui enthusiasts who regularly join the rally at the Government House compound have concluded it was due to bad practice of the ancient Chinese belief.
They alerted the PAD leaders, who promptly followed their advice. For example, large mirrors have been placed at the tip of every ancient cannon around the Government House lawn to "reflect bad feng shui away".
The backstage team was asked to change the position of the stairs from the middle to the side of the stage as having the stairs in the middle could "break apart the PAD." And the experts suggested a pair of lions be placed at each end of the stage.
But a suggestion to relocate the main stage to the opposite side in order to have Santi Maitree building as the back wall was a step too far.
"Dismantling and reinstalling this huge stage would cost us hundreds of thousands of baht plus the labour of dozens of our staff," said Anchalee Paireerak, a PAD moderator. "Thanks for your advice, but just let it be."
Dog mess and stray spouses
Forget cliched policies such as increasing green areas, cleaning up canals, or putting more bins on Bangkok streets.
Candidates in the upcoming city governor election have more interesting ideas to offer.
Nappies for dogs, closed-circuit cameras installed at massage parlours to keep a record of the married men who visit, the setting up of a dedicated cockroach-busting unit - these are some of the nutty ideas proposed by contenders in the Oct 5 race.
"To keep public areas clean from dog mess, dog owners will be asked to put nappies on their pets," said independent candidate Kriangsak Charoenwongsak, who enters the race with the slogan "Dr Dan Can Do".
He is also promising to free Bangkok of cockroaches and rats.
Leena Jangjanja, a 49-year-old candidate, vowed to strengthen married life by installing closed-circuit cameras at the entrances of massage parlours across Bangkok.
"If I become city governor, I will help you keep track of your husband. He can no longer escape you to enjoy visiting such places," Ms Leena said.
The garment exporter also vowed to buy all deserted buildings in Bangkok and renovate them into recreational venues for people to hang around.
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